


overworked

by n0nbinney



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Caffeine Addiction, Hallucinations, Hospitalization, M/M, Not Beta Read, Other, Overworking, We Die Like Men, leon is a dumbass, maybe this is just vent writing oopsies, oops leon almost ODs on caffeine, post eternatus, still don't know how to tag, trauma? maybe? idk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-13
Updated: 2020-12-13
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:35:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,773
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28053276
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/n0nbinney/pseuds/n0nbinney
Summary: Leon's hands are shaking as he downs his sixth energy drink.Or was it the seventh?
Relationships: Dande | Leon/Kibana | Raihan, Dande | Leon/Kibana | Raihan/Nezu | Piers, Dande | Leon/Nezu | Piers, Kibana | Raihan/Nezu | Piers
Comments: 5
Kudos: 70





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> GRAF BARK BARK I'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS FOR LITERAL WEEKS JESUS CHRIST  
> anyway- I'm not too sure I liked how this turned out, but at least it's done tbh  
> I've been slowly sucked into the OT3 of Leon, Raihan, and Piers and to be honest, I'm not too mad about it. these bitches cute asf.   
> ALSO IMPORTANT, I headcanon piers uses he/they pronouns! because I want representation dammit!  
> I ALSO HAVE A TWITTER NOW! @n0nbinney :)

Leon’s fingers were shaking when he grabbed another Pokedollar, the familiar LED glow of the vending machine making him squint. He turned off most of the lights in his office, the white light giving him a headache. He only had his desk lamp on so he could see, which was a nice warm hue that didn’t hurt his eyes as much. His fingers fumbled with the money, trying to flip it over so the machine would accept it. Thankfully, it did, and he pressed ‘A6’, the motion almost familiar to him. Out came a can of Hydreigon Energy- a popular energy drink he was quite fond of- which he snatched up greedily. He headed down the hall, struggling to open the can- his eyes narrowed, he pursed his lips and finally, the tab pierced through. He hurried down the hall, making a list in his head of the things he had to do. The very important, chairman-y things that he definitely could name off of the top of his head _without_ looking at his whiteboard. He sighed quietly- he couldn’t remember. His head was a little fuzzy, he _had_ done a lot of work recently- but that was fine. He was fine- there was just so much work to be done. Since Rose’s firing, he was now chairman, which was _great!_ He enjoyed it quite a lot! He was very thankful for this opportunity, and he honestly thought he couldn’t be a better fit for the job. He had everything under control, he- he didn’t _need help_ , it was just- it was a little overwhelming at first, that was all. He got a handle on everything rather quickly, actually!

When he first entered Rose’s office, it was a bloody mess- papers stacked as high as the ceiling, filing cabinets stuffed full, a chalkboard meant for writing ideas down absolutely covered in nonsensical drabble- it seemed he was entirely enveloped in paranoia due to the nonexistent ‘energy crisis’. It completely enveloped the man, and Leon couldn’t help but worry about his state of mind. Hopefully now, he was getting  _ some  _ form of help. Of course, Leon cleaned out the entire office by himself, and it now looked much better- but there were still stacks of forms he had to fill out that Rose completely ignored. Things like financial aid requests from Spikemuth, advertising opportunities that he of course agreed to, requests for new tourist attractions in Ballonlea, a new hatchery in the wild area for lost eggs- it was a mess. He sat down at his desk, pushing an empty can into the trash- for some odd reason, he twitched when he heard the can clink against all of the others. He didn’t let it distract him, he had work to do. He tipped a bit of the fizzy drink back, then set the can down. 

He opened up his laptop again, squinting as the bright light hit his eyes. He pinched the bridge of his nose, reaching into the drawers of his desk and pulling out those fancy blue-light glasses Raihan bought for him. He felt a little bad for complaining about it so much, but then again- the glasses really did help. He looked at the screen, and just so happened to look at the time. It was  _ two in the morning? _

His eyes widened, and he slammed his laptop shut. He couldn’t believe it, he fucking forgot- he promised Raihan and Piers he’d be back by at  _ least  _ one thirty, and- and he  _ forgot! _ He was such a scatterbrain, he’d become so enveloped in his work. He could see their faces right now, Piers’s tired eyes narrowing at him, Raihan’s lips turning into a very rare frown. It almost made him sick with guilt. He hurriedly shoved his laptop and a few papers into his bag, grabbing his energy drink and heading towards the doors. He took a look at his phone, and his heart dropped. He had so many missed calls from both Raihan  _ and  _ Piers, and so many texts. They were probably so worried- no, so  _ angry.  _ He didn’t have time to read them, too wrapped up in his thoughts to properly process their words. This had been a problem for way too long. He’d spend all of his time at the office, come home to their worried faces, kiss each of them and crash in bed. He could barely register anything at that point, but he did hear their worried whispers about him. 

He  _ hated  _ it. 

He didn’t want to make them feel bad, he hated being such a nuisance. It wasn’t his fault, just- everything was a little too much right now. Too many thoughts, too many things happening all at once. He could handle it just fine, he just needed a bit of time and space. But it was fine- he had dealt with this in the past, he knew what he was doing. It just- it required hard work, and perseverance, and  _ plenty _ of energy. He paused for a moment, snapping out of his thoughts- he forgot to turn his desk lamp off. He sighed shakily, turning around and looking back at his desk. 

“Leon.” he heard a familiar voice say, and he felt a lump form in his throat. 

“R-Rose?” he croaked out, seeing the previous chairman sitting in his chair, feet up on the desk. His hands were folded over his stomach, piercing green eyes locked on Leon. “How- you’re supposed to be-”

“I’m very disappointed, Leon.” he said, and that made Leon feel like he was eleven all over again. Standing in front of Rose’s desk after a less than stellar match. Wait- no, no,  _ Rose  _ never did the scolding. He would just pat his back and say ‘maybe next time, okay?’. No, it was  _ Oleana  _ that did the scolding. As he thought this, Rose’s form shimmered, fading away like some sort of vision, like one a Mismagius would use. Now he saw Oleana standing beside the desk, her arms crossed over her chest. Leon backed up a step, feeling his breathing start to pick up. When did he get so out of breath? He hadn’t moved anywhere, he was just frozen in place. He stared up at Oleana, and she stared back- when did she get that tall, was she always that tall? He squeezed his eyes shut, putting a hand against his forehead. What was happening to him, why did he feel like this? His head felt light, and he was- holy  _ shit  _ he was so  _ sweaty _ . It was like he had a fever, or something. He opened his eyes, and Oleana was gone. There was someone standing there, but he couldn’t quite make out their face. They were shifting rapidly, faces and bodies he thought he recognized, but as soon as he put a name to a face they morphed again. They were Nessa, then they were Kabu, then they were Hop. Their form was fuzzy, almost  _ muffled  _ in a sense. He blinked hard once more, and they were gone, small wisps of shadow in their place.

He  _ had  _ to get out of here.

He hurried to the elevator, shaking fingers pressing the ‘ground floor’ option. He tapped his foot anxiously, looking around as the numbers slowly ticked down. He blinked, seeing something out of the corner of his eye. Someone was here, someone was going to get him- No, no, it was just his reflection in the infinite mirror. Now that he was looking at himself- Arceus above, he looked  _ horrible.  _ His hair was up in a messy ponytail, it used to be nice and neat. His face was pale, and he had huge bags under his eyes. He touched his face slowly, eyes widening in horror when the skin he touched peeled away, revealing nothing underneath. He closed his eyes, cramming the palms of his hands into his eyes. He crouched down, a low, groaning noise coming from his throat. He inhaled deeply, trying to regulate his breathing, but it didn’t work. If anything, with the realization he was hyperventilating, it got worse. Everything felt light, but in the worst way possible. Now that he was focusing on his body, he registered a growing feeling in the pit of his stomach. He suddenly felt so  _ sick _ , he felt like he could throw up. God, what was wrong with him? 

It was probably just exhaustion, or something. 

It was late, he was tired, that was  _ it _ . 

Yeah. 

He just needed to get home and go to sleep. Eat something, maybe he could ask Piers to make some dirty curry fries- oh, his stomach was growling at the thought. Or- or was it bubbling? It didn’t matter. He would give himself a day off tomorrow, spend it with Raihan and Piers- it’d been a while since they were all together, ever since Leon became the new chairman. It was just a lot of ‘miss you’ texts and late night cuddles when everyone was too exhausted to think. Soft touches in the mornings, just before his alarm went off and he’d have to face the world without them. Little mumbles of ‘I love you’ when neither of them could hear him and respond. But= no, he couldn’t take a day off, more work would pile up… oh, he’d just work until it was done, and then take all the time he could off afterwards. He’d give himself two whole weeks off, go on plenty of dates with Raihan and Piers- they could go somewhere nice and sunny, like Alola. He could hear Piers’s complaining now- maybe Unova would be a better fit for him, or Kanto. Thinking about his partners made his head light- but as he did, his train of thought went to a dark place. What would they say when they saw him like this, disheveled and panicky and at his absolute  _ worst _ .

He hurried out into the darkened lobby, gripping the strap of his laptop bag. Thankfully, no one was around to see him like this. He breathed a sigh of relief, pushing open the large glass doors-

“Lee!” he heard Raihan’s voice chime, and his entire body jerked in surprise. He looked up from the ground, taking a moment to smile when he saw his partners walking towards him. Oh man, he felt so lightheaded. He misstepped, almost falling but catching himself at the last minute.

“Arceus alive, Leon- ya look like shit.” he heard Piers say, which pulled a quiet laugh from Leon. He dug his fingers into the aluminum of his can to try and stop their shaking. He swallowed down a lump in his throat, trying to think of something to say. Something witty, something that would get the attention away from him. Raihan got there first.

“He’s right, Lee. You don’t look so good.” he muttered worriedly, which made Leon wince. That was the one thing he hated doing- he hated making others worry about him. He wanted to help people, make their day better. Not weigh them down with his own personal state. He quickly tried to remedy the situation, giving a big, (hopefully convincing) smile. 

“I’m fine, I just spent a little too long at the office. It was just a long day. I feel better now that I can see you guys, though. I-I missed you.” he reassured, looking past the two of them for the Corvicab they took here. He just wanted to get home and lay down, he didn’t feel good enough to chat at the moment. That could come when they were all at home together. Piers raised an eyebrow at Leon, and Leon met his eye with a smile. “I’m okay. I promise.” he said, reaching out and taking Piers’s hand, folding their fingers together and running his thumb over their knuckle.

As if someone out there was playing a cruel, cruel trick on Leon, this was the moment he felt the absolute worst. He put a hand over his mouth as bile rose through his throat, and immediately ran to the grass, falling on his hands and knees and throwing up. A hand was placed on his back, which scared him a little, while another pulled his hair back as he upheaved the contents of his stomach. His head was light and heavy at the same time, he was sweating so bad, what was  _ wrong with him? _

“Fucking-  _ Leon,  _ what’s the matter?” Raihan asked, nearly shouting at this point. No, he wasn’t shouting, everything was just so  _ loud. _

“I-I don’t  _ know _ .” Leon croaked out when he could breathe, and he noticed that he was crying, now. He felt so lightheaded, he needed to lay down, he needed- he needed-

“Rai, call for an ambulance- Lee, it’s okay.” Piers tried to soothe, and normally it would’ve worked- but Leon just felt so  _ bad,  _ he wanted to crawl out of his fucking skin. The soft touch on his back made his skin prickle. He was breathing heavily, eyes squeezed shut. He felt a hand press against his forehead and a swear immediately followed. 

“I’m sorry, I-” he whimpered, feeling guilt overwhelm him on top of everything else. He didn’t want to worry them and make them feel bad because of how bad  _ he  _ was feeling- he wished they never came, that he could’ve dealt with this on his own. He tried to move away from Piers and get to his feet, but his legs were as wobbly as a newly hatched Girafarig’s. He fell forward again onto his palms, and they were definitely scuffed up by now. He sucked in a breath. Piers put a hand on his back again, and they said something, but Leon couldn’t register it, he didn’t understand. He blinked heavily, feeling another wave of nausea. Wait, no, he already threw up again- it was there on the ground in front of him. He felt so disoriented, one minute he was on his hands and knees, the next he saw red and white lights, and the next he was being put onto a stretcher. Everything felt so far away, all of his senses were muffled and muddied. Like he was underwater, and everything happening around him was on the surface. He winced as a flashlight was shone into his eyes, closing them and pursing his lips. He still felt so sick, he just wanted to go to sleep. He wanted to go home, and get in bed, and cuddle. But- wait, he couldn’t get to sleep without Raihan and Piers, where were they? He tried to say something call out for them, but his mouth felt like it was filled with cotton- god, he felt so bad. He would just rest his eyes for a minute, that’s it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to try and cram this all into one chapter, but I really didn't think that was possible- so enjoy two chapters posted on the same day, lolol

When he opened his eyes next, he was having an IV put in his arm, and one of those little finger clips he couldn’t think of the name of was on his finger. He looked around, then at the nurse and her Blissey, who smiled at him. He flexed his hand for a minute, then sat up- no, that was way too fast. He immediately laid back down, groaning from the effort.

“Am I at the hospital?” he asked wearily, and she nodded. He sighed, frustration evident in his tone, letting his head fall back against the pillows. At least they were soft… 

“How are you feeing?” she asked kindly, and he opened his mouth to say ‘I’m okay’ but he immediately closed it. The Blissey would call his bluff- in the nicest way possible, of course, but he’d still feel embarrassed. He pursed his lips.

“Can I be honest? I’d feel better if I was at home.” he grumbled, rubbing his eye with the palm of his hand. “Where… where are my Pokemon?” he asked, clearing his throat. The nurse and her Blissey went in different directions- the nurse returned with his Pokeball belt, and the Blissey returned with a cup. She offered it to him, and he accepted, taking a look inside. Water. He gulped it down greedily, like he’d never had it in his life, nearly choking on it. But, it tasted  _ brilliant.  _ Even if it was only water. He set the cup down, reaching for his belt. He didn’t want to let Charizard out yet- he wouldn’t like the hospital setting. It just felt better having it near him, almost safer in a way. He glanced toward the window, and almost immediately, the Blissey waddled over and opened the curtains. It was still pitch black outside… shit. He put a hand over his face, groaning.

“Fuck- Leon!” he moved his hand away when he heard that voice- 

“Oh, Raihan.” he whispered, and almost immediately he was swamped in a hug. He wrapped his arms carefully around Raihan, shoving his face into the crook of his neck and breathing in deep. The smell of Raihan’s 3 in 1 body wash, shampoo and conditioner that Piers always complained about flooded his senses, and almost instantly he was calmed. He felt safe- wait, no. Something was missing. Some _ one _ was missing.

“Where’s Piersy? Did- did they not want to come?” he questioned, leaning back from the hug. He knew hospital settings made Piers uncomfortable. He didn’t know why, per se, but it wasn’t his business to know. Hopefully, Piers would tell them the answer to that question later…

“He wanted to stay back at the office. Said he wanted to look around.” Raihan answered, and immediately, Leon’s stomach twisted. He felt like throwing up all over again- wait, no, that wasn’t  _ just  _ a feeling- and just in time, the Blissey handed him a trashcan.

He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, leaving the trashcan on the floor for the Blissey to take. He took another sip of his water with a quiet groan, leaning into Raihan, who had now moved to the left side of Leon’s bed.

“So- did they tell you what’s wrong with you?” Raihan muttered. He started doing that thing that Leon liked- messing and playing around with his fingers while they talked. 

“No… just woke up a few minutes ago.” he explained, and Raihan made an ‘ohhh’ sound. They sat in silence for a moment or two, then Raihan cleared his throat. Leon met his eyes.

“Listen, Lee. ‘Fore anything else happens- is there anything you need to get off of your chest? Anything?” he mumbled, voice low. Thankfully, the nurse and Blissey had taken their leave for now. He took a minute, brow furrowing.

“Um- no..? Leon said with a light laugh, shaking his head. He shifted slightly in bed, Raihan’s suspicious eyes on him making him a little nervous. “Wh-Why do you ask?” he returned with a question, and Raihan took a glance at his phone for a moment. He furrowed his brow, and almost out of habit, Leon moved to try and get a look. But he realised what he was doing, and sat back down, folding his fingers together. Raihan made a face at his phone screen.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, and Raihan leaned over, giving him a kiss on the forehead. “Nothin’. Just thinking about how we’re gonna get out of here- no doubt the news channels’re gonna eat this up.” he sighed, and Leon felt sick again. He didn’t even  _ think _ about the media fallout. Once they caught wind that the current chairman, former champion was in the hospital, they wouldn’t even be able to leave without flashing lights in their faces and shouts of ‘look this way!’, probing questions that got way too personal too fast. The thought made him suck in a breath, but of course, he looked to help his partner.

“I’m sure it’ll be fine. Charizard can help, so can Duraludon. Maybe Obstagoon, too. I-It’ll be okay.” he muttered, and reached out for his belt. He absently ran a hand over Charizard’s pokeball. Everything would be okay.

After a few more moments of comfortable silence, Leon’s expression suddenly brightened. He saw the familiar mop of black and white hair, he could recognize it anywhere. That permanent scowl could brighten up his whole day, and he wasn’t kidding. Raihan glanced up from where he was looking at his phone, and pursed his lips. He glanced between the two, and it seemed as if they were having some sort of telepathic conversation, something that Leon wasn’t allowed to be in on. He gave Raihan’s hand a squeeze out of sheer habit, something of a nervous tick he’d developed ever since they’d grown more comfortable together. It just felt reassuring to know either one of his partners were there for him. They were his stability, his rock.

Speaking of, Piers entered the room, looking at Leon with eyes that made Leon feel sick again. He looked so…  _ worried  _ about him. So concerned for his wellbeing, so… so… 

He dry heaved into the trashcan.

Piers took a seat on the bed, thankfully pulling back his hair again. Leon panted into the trashcan, groaning and leaning against his partner.

“If y’ didn’t want to see me, y’ could’ve just said so.” Piers murmured in a hopefully joking tone, and Leon chuckled a little, setting the trashcan down again and taking a slow, steady sip of water. It was relief for his aching throat, and hopefully would soon be relief for his pounding headache. He noticed the look on Piers’s face- of course he did. They looked… conflicted. Were they mad? They seemed mad. Their lips were pursed as they looked at him, brow knitted together in a way that Leon quickly realized was frustration. They opened their mouth, ready to speak- there was a gentle knock at the door before he could. Leon looked over, the door opening to reveal a doctor as he did.

“Hello, how’s everyone doing today?” She asked.

“Fine.” Piers muttered, his tone of voice making Leon’s anxiety hike. He cleared his throat, sitting up carefully in the bed. Piers had moved to go sit by Raihan, their brow furrowed and lips pursed in a thin line. Raihan had an arm around him, one hand absently messing with a strand of hair, twirling it around his fingers. Leon wanted so badly to sit between them- not to break them up, of course, but to just… be with them. Be surrounded by them, comforted by them.

“My name is Dr. Nguyen, I’ll be taking care of you today. I’m just going to ask you a few questions so we can get to the bottom of this, okay?”

“Yeah, sounds good.” he muttered.

“When was the last time you slept?”

“Uh- last night.”

“Alright, and how long did you sleep for?”  _ oh man, he couldn’t actually remember. When did he get home last night? One, one thirty in the morning? And he got up at six to get to work today, so five- ish hours? He couldn’t lie his way out of this question, Piers and Raihan would definitely call his bluff.  _

“Erm- five hours, just about.” he mumbled, watching as she nodded and wrote something down on her clipboard. He swallowed nervously.

“What did you have to eat last?”  _ well, he remembered at about four he had some sushi from the cafeteria, that was pretty good… did the sushi make him sick? No, the chefs were pretty reliable. They wouldn’t serve him anything that was bad. Four was too early to have dinner- six would be better. _

“I had some sushi in the cafeteria, it was maybe… six o’clock?” he said, and the doctor nodded.

“And when did you last have anything to drink?”  _ oh, that one was easy.  _

“Ah- I had a Hydreigon energy at… two, maybe? I can’t really remember what flavor it was. Though- that’s probably not important, in the grand scheme of things-” he laughed to himself, but quickly stopped when he realized he was the only one laughing. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Piers take Raihan’s hand.

“And how many of those did you have? Do you remember?” The Doctor asked, and this question made Leon think for a moment.

_ Well- he had one when he had that sushi, then a few hours passed, it might’ve been about eight when he got the next one. Then he started drinking a lot more, it really just blended together... _

“I-I don’t actually think I know. About-”

“Seven. The full size ones.” Piers interrupted, and Leon’s eyes widened. He had  _ seven _ of those? It didn’t seem like seven, there- there was no way. Piers had to have miscounted. Doctor Nguyen quirked her brow, looking back towards Leon.

“If that’s true, Leon, that would certainly explain a few things.” She muttered, writing a few more things down on her board before looking up at Leon. “Is it?”

“Y-Yes. It is.” he muttered, voice full of shame. He couldn’t meet the doctor’s eyes, instead looking down at his hands. He lifted up one to bite on his nails, bouncing his leg under the sheets. He wasn’t really paying attention to her when she spoke, and he felt bad for it- but his mind was so cluttered, so many thoughts were going through his head all at once that he couldn’t hope to focus on anything else. Two words did catch his attention, however.

“ _ Caffeine overdose. _ ”

He looked up at her at that, swallowing thickly.

“ _ O-Overdose? _ ” he repeated, and she nodded. 

“In the moments before you met up with your partners- tell me what happened.”

“I… I was finishing up my work, and…” he didn’t want to say exactly what happened- that would only make his partners worry about him. “I… I hallucinated. I think. I saw things. I was really hot and sweaty, and- and I was throwing up. I don’t remember much else.” he admitted with a slight purse of his lips, looking down at his hands again.

“Well- the only thing that I can really prescribe for that is less caffeine. Stop pushing yourself as hard, get adequate amounts of sleep and hydrate well. I hate to say it, but it’s obvious you haven’t been doing any of those things.” she muttered, and he felt his stomach drop.

“I-It is?”

“It is.” Piers and Raihan said in unison, Raihan giving a slight snort afterwards.

“Well- I’ll leave you to get rest. It’s late, after all. We’ll be keeping a close eye on you. I’m assuming your friends are going to stay with you?” she muttered, and Raihan nodded.

“Yes ma’am.” 

And with that, she left.

He looked over at Piers, opening his mouth to speak- but he didn’t really know what he could say that would make everything better. Piers was mad at him, he could see it in his face- they were so mad. He couldn’t hold eye contact with him, not after what he did to himself.

“Lee. Look at me.” Piers muttered, and Leon begrudgingly listened, looking up and meeting his partner’s disappointed look. “Why’re you doin’ this to yourself?” they asked him, and he pursed his lips.

“I- I just want to do a good job. I-I want to help people.” he said quietly. “Rose… he put so much aside, focused his entire being on this energy crisis. I-I have so much to do, so much to figure out. I can’t take any breaks.” he explained hoarsely, almost getting frustrated with himself at the mere mention of the scenario he was in. Raihan narrowed his eyes lightly.

“Leon- you can’t help anyone else if you’re overdosing on caffeine. You need to take breaks, take care of yourself. You’ve been basically a zombie every time we’ve seen you.” he scoffed quietly, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back in his chair.

“He’s right, you know.” Piers grumbled, his narrowed eyes making Leon’s face flush in embarrassment. Piers got up, moving to the other side of Leon’s bed and taking a seat on the bed. “I’m not… mad at you. You jus’ want to help people. That ain’t a bad thing. But it becomes a bad thing when ya don’t take care of yerself. Hear me?” he muttered, reaching out and putting a hand on Leon’s cheek. Leon leaned into the touch, letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. 

“Y-Yeah. Think so.” he mumbled. Raihan’s arm slid around his shoulders.

“You’re takin a break, hope you know that.” he snorted, and Leon’s eyes shot open.

“Wait- what? I-I can’t take a break, I’ve still got to-”

A stern look from Piers and Raihan combined shut Leon up quickly.

“I-I guess I could take a break.”

**Author's Note:**

> hope y'all enjoyed :)


End file.
